October 21, 2015

Helen's Alaskan Debut

Last April was my first time going to Alaska. They had a good snow year, but things could change in a heart beat. It ended up snowing a lot and the avalanche rating was high. We headed up anyway, in hopes for sunny days and relatively safe conditions. Haines was the town where we posted up, in a vintage army housing site. We were there for 16 days and 11 of them were down days. These consisted of: lots of rain, hiking, yoga, fishing, and coffee dates. The scenery was breathtaking. The sky was filled with bald eagles and the roads filled with wild life.

Our first day out in the helicopter was insane, I had never seen such beauty. After a few days we worked up the courage to ask our guide to bring us to a spot called "Tripe Shot". It was way above our skill level but we were drawn to it. Not only was I nervous to ride the most dangerous and steepest line I have ever ridden, but I was being followed closely by a helicopter with our filmer hanging out trying to capture the shot. It was the most satisfying day of my life. I’ll never forget the feeling when you ride out of a line with the helicopter so close to you, you can feel the rotors. Best feeling. EVER.

- Helen Schettini

The scenery is all-time! You can’t pull off a pow slash without it looking like a winner.

Passing the time in Haines. There’s actually a ton of stuff to do and sights to see. Fishing was one of them; yet I need to learn more so I catch something next time!

This line had a blind drop in with a mini cornice that was A LOT bigger when you were on top of the line. Once you get over the blind section and see your slash spots and run out, you start smiling so big.

Riding out of a technical line at the speed of light is the best feeling.

Heading back from the heli pad, we couldn’t pass up on some beautiful yoga.